Louis Smith dumped clingy Lucy Mecklenburgh

Louis Smith felt he had no choice but to dump Lucy Mecklenburgh earlier this year because she was getting too attached to him

Louis Smith dumped Lucy Mecklenburgh because he thought she was getting "too attached" to him too quickly.

The Olympic gymnast left the former 'The Only Way is Essex' star heartbroken in February after he dramatically ended their year-long romance out of the blue but he has admitted he had no choice but to ditch her because he knew it wasn't right.

He explained: "I wanted to make the decision to end it sooner rather than later. I could have stayed with Lucy but the longer I left it, the more attached she would feel and the more damage it would have done in the future.

"It was hard, but if it's not right, it's not right and I wanted to make the decision to end it sooner rather than later."

But, although they seemingly ended on bitter terms, the former couple - who struck up a relationship in 2014 after meeting on the show 'Tumble' - are now talking again.

He said: "We still talk. Time definitely heals all wounds so we chat now and again. I'd say we're borderline friends."

Louis is now focusing on the 2016 Olympics in Rio but he hasn't ruled out finding love again in the near future.

Speaking to OK! magazine, he said of his thoughts on love: "When I get married, I only want to do it once and want to spend the rest of my life with that woman. I can't wait to have kids and be the father that my dad was to me."